


On Gossamer Wings

by lady_ragnell



Series: Just One of Those Things [3]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-04
Updated: 2012-01-04
Packaged: 2017-10-28 21:18:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/312276
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lady_ragnell/pseuds/lady_ragnell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur and Merlin argue about when their anniversary actually is.</p>
            </blockquote>





	On Gossamer Wings

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Just One of Those Things" by Cole Porter.

“Our anniversary is coming up,” Arthur remarks one night on his couch.

Merlin squints at him over his laptop. “Is not. We didn’t start dating until January.”

Arthur pokes him. “Don’t be thick, Merlin, it doesn’t suit you. We were together before that horrendously awkward conversation and you know it. You’re the one who told your mother we started dating in November.”

“Well, of course I did, I don’t want my mother thinking I’m a tart. Or that you’re a vile seducer.”

Arthur grins. “Your mother loves me.” He decides not to give Merlin the chance to remind him that that’s probably because Merlin lied about the exact date they started calling it a relationship and barrels on. “No, I meant the anniversary of this becoming not a series of one-night stands. I don’t know the exact date or anything, but it was sometime in the middle of the autumn.” Round about the time he told Morgana he was seeing someone, but he doesn’t know what day that was either.

“An anniversary requires an actual date,” Merlin says firmly.

“So we’ll celebrate the arbitrary date you gave your mother?”

“We don’t have to celebrate at all, it’s not like it matters. We’re together, right? And we’ve been sleeping together for probably more than a year now and dating for about ten months, but I don’t really feel the need for a fancy dinner and champagne on some date neither of us really cares about.”

“It’s good to have an agreed-upon day, though, to celebrate how long we’ve been together,” Arthur argues. Normally he wouldn’t care--he’s never been one to make a fuss over holidays or anniversaries, something he inherited from his father--but he’s been looking for an excuse to ask Merlin to move in with him for well over a month, and an anniversary might actually be a good reason.

Merlin closes his laptop with a put-upon sigh. “You have some sort of plan, don’t you? You’re going to whisk me away to Morocco for our anniversary the second you figure out when it is. Can’t we just do it for the New Year? I imagine Morocco is a lot nicer than here in January.”

“If you want to go to Morocco, we can certainly go, but it wasn’t in the plan. This is just something I’ve been considering.”

“And you call _me_ a girl.” Arthur throws a pen at him and doesn’t much care when he misses. Merlin just raises his eyebrows. “Seriously, you actually care when our anniversary is? I’ll concede that it probably isn’t January 1st, but it doesn’t actually matter to me. Will said he assumed we were dating after the first time he came back and found you on our couch with me, if that helps.”

“It’s not like I recorded that in my calendar.”

“Seriously.” Merlin turns until he’s facing Arthur, not just sitting next to him. “Something’s bothering you, you don’t care about things like this, so what’s the problem?”

“There’s no problem, didn’t mean to disturb you.” Arthur makes a point of looking back at the book he’s been pretending to read for the past fifteen minutes.

Merlin tugs the book out of his hands and glares when Arthur objects. “Tell me, or I’m sleeping at mine,” he threatens, and Arthur spares a second to wonder when Merlin figured out that it’s a threat. “Whatever it is, I can pretty much guarantee it doesn’t deserve this much angst and beating around the bush, and I don’t actually want to go back to my place, Will has that girl there again.”

“She’s actually quite nice. I just think you two are destined to hate each other’s boyfriends and girlfriends.”

“It’s a brother thing, and you’re avoiding the subject.”

“I don’t hate everyone Morgana dates, and she doesn’t hate you,” Arthur points out. “And of course I’m avoiding the subject, thus why I was beating around the bush in the first place, Merlin, would you at least try to keep up?”

Merlin sighs. “Arthur. Unless you are breaking up with me, which I assume is not going to happen if you’re asking about anniversaries, it’s probably not that bad.”

It’s a Tuesday night, just another night with the television and takeout and both of them having to be up for work in the morning, and Arthur wanted to ask with wine and dinner out and possibly some stupid way of hiding the key because Merlin’s reactions when he does things like that are generally hilarious, but he knows Merlin too well by now to think he’ll get away with not saying it. “I want you to move in. Or I suppose we could find a new place, but here is convenient to both of our workplaces, so I’d really rather not.”

There’s a moment of silence while Merlin stares at him in blank shock, and then he cracks up. Arthur waits it out for about thirty seconds and then whacks him on the shoulder to get an actual answer out of him. “You do realize that at least three quarters of my stuff is here and I sleep here five nights out of seven?”

“Yes, but I’d rather make it official.”

“You and your obsession with making things official,” Merlin sighs, but he’s smiling, so Arthur doesn’t think he really minds much. “We’re going to argue constantly,” he adds.

“Then we can figure out who’s more at fault and have whoever it is sleep on the couch for a night. And if you go off in a snit it’s not like Will will kick you out.”

“Sure, because of the two of us I’m the more likely to go off in a snit,” Merlin mutters, grin still on his face. Arthur pokes him again. “Seriously, Arthur, you think I’m going to say no?”

Arthur shrugs and looks away. “Not because you don’t love me and want to spend time with me, but I know how important Will is to you even if he is a wanker, and if you didn’t want to--”

Merlin practically lunges into his lap to kiss him. “Shut up, you aren’t allowed to be wonderful when I’m trying to make fun of you.” Arthur laughs and kisses him back, feeling a little lighter. “Yes, I’m moving in, in case that wasn’t answer enough for you,” Merlin says eventually. “I’ve got a busy month at work, but sometime before Christmas we’ll get everything sorted out.”

“Okay.” Arthur kisses him again, mostly so he won’t be caught grinning like a fool, and, when Merlin grinds down in his lap, wonders if he should move this particular celebration to the bedroom.

After a few minutes, Merlin pulls away. “What’s the date?”

Arthur blinks at him. “What the hell? Why do you care?”

“Because,” says Merlin, “if you’re insisting on having an anniversary, I’d say this is as good a day as any.”


End file.
